From The Mouths of Babes.
Hi There,
Did you hear? It’s official. I’m OLD! How do I know this so definitively? The little boy next door told me.
This endearing young fellow, who calls me “Miss Deborah”, staked his claim while I was pulling weeds and he was hanging precariously from a tree limb. Details about his recent birthday celebration were emerging (the cake, his favorite moments, etc.) and I asked him how old he was, to which he proudly responded, “Five”.
After I replied with the appropriate adult validation, he asked my age. Since I’m not the type to be offended by such a question, I came clean in the form of a teachable moment. “I’m 11 times your age”, helping him along with the math. Once we worked out the calculation, a startled look accompanied his statement of awe. “Wow, you’re old!” When I finally finished laughing, I shared with him Paul Simon’s lyrical wisdom: “Well, I’m older than I once was, and I’m younger than I’ll be”, imagining he would understand one day.
Weeks later, I’m still astonished by his proclamation, as he and I are really the same age. In many ways, I’m still only a youngster. This theory, of course, gets tossed out the window first thing each morning before I stretch and do my pushups (when my pretzeled body feels like it’s hit triple digits). But each time I interact with someone who is young enough to be my grandkid, I forget there’s an age difference.
The pitcher Satchel Paige famously asked, “How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?” I’d like to follow that question with another: “What decisions will you make today that your older, wiser self will thank you for in the future?” A younger, less-seasoned self may make decisions that benefit you in the moment but are self-defeating in the long run. But that older, wiser self makes decisions based on how you’d like your future self to live.
As my older, wiser self, I’ve used Clarity to reframe the concept of age. I embrace my years lived as wisdom gained. Instead of being bummed about my silver hair and the big wrinkle between my eyes, I now consider such age indicators to be my earned battle scars.
As far as people knowing my age, I embrace another Satchel Paige classic: “Age is a question of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.”
Cheers!
-Deborah
Deborah Goldstein
DRIVEN Professionals / Forbes / Linkedin
info@drivenpros.com | LinkedIn
DRIVEN Professionals, 35 Adrienne Lane, Garrison, NY 10524